Vets Now Announces its Stars of 2008!
Over 150 staff and guests gathered last night for the annual Vets Now MAD (Make a Difference) Awards ceremony which took place at the Majestic Hotel in Harrogate, kicking off the two day Emergency & Critical Care 5th Vets Now Annual Congress.
The awards which celebrate individual dedication and achievement, with a separate team award for excellence, were presented by Vets Now's founder, Richard Dixon, who commented; "The MAD Awards is an opportunity for staff to nominate one of their peers who they feel really has made a difference. The passion and commitment shown by Vets Now staff are what makes out team truly special and this ceremony is a celebration of the dedication and achievements of our team."
The first MAD Awards ceremony which was held last year was an overwhelming success and the past few months have seen a steady flow of nominations pouring in for each of the eight categories. The difficult task of picking a winner for each of seven of the categories was down to the members of the Judging Panel - Glen Gribbon, MD Vets Now Emergency, Amanda Boag, Vets Now Clinical Director and Fiona Dewar, HR Director and Lisa Robb, Marketing Manager for Vets Now. Elizabeth Welsh, BVMS CertVA CertSAS PhD MRCVS, member of the Vets Now Clinical Board and one of the speakers at this year's Congress was this year's external judge.
The category for ‘Team of Stars' was shortlisted to three nominations and the voting then opened up to Vets Now staff to pick their team of the year, with a little help from each team with their truly individual and highly amusing ‘Campaign for Votes'!
The winners of each category are as follows:
Star Veterinary Surgeon - Natasha Melbourne, Veterinary Surgeon, Belfast
Star Veterinary Nurse - Donna Johnson, Senior Veterinary Nurse, Bradford
Star Receptionist - Anita Kerfoot, Receptionist, Stoke
Ambulance Star - Gareth Roscoe, Ambulance Care Assistant, Winchester
Support Office Star - Lisa Docherty, Recruitment Consultant, Dunfermline
Team of Stars - Vets Now Bradford
The winners of each "job role" category walked away with a ‘Red Letter Day' prize, allowing them to choose an unforgettable experience day and the Team of Stars scooped a £500 to put towards a staff night out to remember! The winners of the Clinical and Client Care awards each received a bottle of champagne.